Broncos' Shane Ray has been waiting three months to say this: "I'm back."

OLB will make his 2017 debut tonight in his hometown of Kansas City

By Nicki Jhabvala

The Denver Post

Posted:
10/29/2017 05:49:41 PM MDT

Updated:
10/29/2017 05:50:19 PM MDT

Broncos' linebackers Shane Ray, left, and Von Miller celebrate a fumble recovered in the fourth quarter against the Oakland Raiders at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Jan. 1. (Steve Nehf / The Denver Post)

DENVER — Twenty-five boxes were crossed out on Shane Ray's "Keep Grindin'" calendar, his homemade countdown to his comeback. Still blank were "5 DAYS" and "4 DAYS" and so on as the Broncos outside linebacker crept closer and closer to his return to the field.

Ray, struggling to sit still at his locker at team headquarters as he was pressed about his impending 2017 debut, had the energy and smile of a young boy. He couldn't contain it, try as he might. He couldn't help but tell anyone nearby that he is indeed coming back.

"We know, Shane," a teammate deadpanned.

"We got it, Shane," another teammate uttered.

Broncos' outside linebacker Shane Ray stands with T.J. Ward before practice. The team moved practice indoors during training camp on Aug. 7 in Englewood. (John Leyba / The Denver Post)

Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium, Ray's wait will end as he steps onto the field for the first time after an arduous recovery from wrist surgery. And he will do it in his hometown of Kansas City, in front of a large contingent of family members and friends wearing a mix of orange and blue, and red and white, cheering on both him and their beloved Chiefs.

"Been losing a little bit of sleep over it," Ray said with a wide grin. "I just want to get back out there with my brothers and just make some plays. I think I can bring a spark to this team defensively and try to create some turnovers, some fumbles, some sacks, and I think that just helps our defense all around."

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For Ray, three months has been a long time coming as he physically altered his body, watched from afar as his team went 3-3 in his absence, and dealt with an internal battle during injury recovery that so many players experience.

"It's hard," Ray said. "You've got to deal with the injury and trying to get your strength back up, then you've got to deal with the outside image of you because you're not playing. I just focus on the things that I can control ... and playing how I know I can play and how my coaches expect me to play.

"That's all I care about."

The road back

Ray thought it was just a sprain. The pain after his wrist was thrust backward during a block was bearable and didn't stop him from recording sack after sack. So he kept on.

"I remember I did a rep with Menelik (Watson) and I guess what really did it was the impact me and Menelik had," Ray said. "I remember coming back from the rep and I just looked at my hand and I had like a ball, like a knot in my hand. I'm looking at it and I was like, maybe it's like when you get hit and you get a knot and just kind of bubbles up.

"Turns out that was the tendon in my hand. Shows you what I know."

It was only Day 2 of training camp when Ray learned his season would be delayed. The first MRI gave him hope that he could return by Week 2 of the regular season, but he awoke from surgery to hear something much different.

"The doctor said he had to repair my whole wrist and hand. ... Waking up with that news, that (stinks)," Ray said.

The Broncos placed him on injured reserve, but their schedule spared him two games of waiting; because of the Broncos' early bye and their Monday night game that falls after the start of Week 8, Ray had to miss only six games instead of the usual eight for players recalled early from IR.

So he made the most each day away from the field.

About two weeks after surgery, Ray was back on a treadmill and simulating games to keep his mind on the playbook. Unable to do upper-body weightlifting, he devoted more time to core exercises and improving his speed. Though he shed about 10 pounds in the process, he says he is more explosive than ever.

"Which I think is more important because I can still win with a lot of speed, I can still win with quickness," he said. "I don't have to use power as much if I'm faster."

Ray also spent even more time watching film, building on the teachings of veteran Von Miller and the recently retired DeMarcus Ware.

"I see things differently than I did last year and the year before that," Ray said. "I'm just breaking stuff down like a cyborg now. I look at 200 plays of just this guy, trying to find any twitch. I felt like an assistant coach for the last three weeks, whether it's been finding tips to give to Joe Woods on guys, their stances, or talking to Kasim (Edebali) or DeMarcus (Walker), or talking to Shaq (Barrett) about stuff in the meeting room."

Ray will be a starter Monday, but he will be on a snap count to ease him back in fully. He will play the remainder of the season with two screws in his wrist and a large cast that stabilizes the joint while allowing freedom of his fingers.

New dynamic

Ray returns to a Denver defense that, while still dominant, has a slightly new look from when he last played, under the tutelage of coordinator Wade Phillips.

Through Week 7, the Broncos led the league in total defense (258.5 yards allowed per game) but also improved their leaky run defense to rank second with only 71.8 rushing yards allowed.

The missing pieces? The big plays. The crushing sacks, the forced fumbles, the game-altering takeaways. In six games, the Broncos have 16 sacks (14th-most in the NFL) and four takeaways — all interceptions. They are the only team that has yet to force a fumble, despite continued emphasis on stripping the ball in the practices. In the first six games last season, with Ray healthy, the Broncos had 21 sacks and 11 takeaways, including six fumble recoveries.

With Ray in the lineup and used alongside Miller — and even Barrett too, in certain packages — Denver's dubious standing as the league's fumble-less defense may soon be erased.

Ray said his long-held goal of posting a sack a game remains, but his return figures to create even more for his teammates.

"As far as a pass rusher, that's good to have Shane opposite of Von because the protections so far have slid to Von and they've chipped Von most of the time," coach Vance Joseph said. "We've also had double-chippers. With Shane being back, he should get some one-on-ones with Von opposite of him. If we get double-chipped, it's down to three-man routes, which we should win with coverage. Having a good player back is always good."

When Ray looks into the stands at Arrowhead Stadium, he expects to some family members wearing their No. 56 Chiefs jerseys — but with "Ray" on the back instead of Derrick Johnson.

And when Ray returns to Colorado, he no longer will have to look at that calendar hanging in his locker. The wait is over.

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